Mt. Habrich, New Routes
Canada, British Columbia, Coast Mountains, Squamish Area
Mt. Habrich (1,792m) is located high above Squamish and is accessible either via the Sea to Sky Gondola, followed by a hike of about two hours on the Sky Pilot Valley Trail, or by hiking the Sea to Sky Trail to the upper gondola station, adding 900m of elevation gain to your day. Recently there has been a renaissance in development on Habrich, including a 300m 5.13a trad climb called Blood Moon on the peak’s north face. This route was completed during the summer of 2023 by Jacob Cook and Drew Marshall, and is characterized by steep, challenging crack climbing for
five pitches (5.12b, 5.13a, 5.12a, 5.9 R, and 5.12d). Another 180m of 5.7 leads to the top. Cook described the crux as a thin tips crack protected by small offset cams. Both Cook and Marshall sent all the pitches.
In September 2022, Colin Moorhead and Nick McNutt completed Life in Space, a 27-pitch 5.10b route that finishes on Mt. Habrich. Life in Space starts by climbing The Goldilocks Zone, an earlier route established by Moorhead, McNutt, Nick Bejcar, and Jamie Selda in 2021, located on the Stawamus River Headwall. (This cliff is below the northeast side of Mt. Habrich and is accessed by a separate approach involving a 4WD road and a hike of 45 to 60 minutes.) The Goldilocks Zone on its own features 15 pitches of climbing up to 5.10-. From the top, a brief hike accesses the northeast ridge of Habrich, with another 12 pitches up to 5.10. Culminating on the summit, the link-up totals 750m of technical terrain, the longest climb in the Sea to Sky region.
Additionally, in May 2023, Jim and Jola Sandford added Earthshine, a 200m 5.10 route, to the south face of Mt. Habrich.
— Whitney Clark, AAJ